Mammoth Mountain has more than 150 runs — something for every skill level.

Should you fill up the tank and go straight to the snow at Big Bear? Make the Mammoth drive up Highway 395?

Or fly to Vancouver and take the spectacular Sea to Sky Highway to Whistler, B.C., where surprisingly good deals await before and after the 2010 Olympics in February?

There are as many ways to get to the mountain as to get down it. Here’s a look at three West Coast destinations, from almost local to the Canadian runs where you can pretend you’re Lindsey Vonn or Bode Miller going for Olympic glory.

Lodging deal: Midweek packages at local cabins, hotels and lodges starting at $69 a person a night, including accommodations and lift ticket, based on double occupancy. Weekend packages from $89 per person with two-night minimum.
bigbear.com/midweekpackages
or (800) 424-4232.

Big Bear doesn’t even pretend to be Lake Arrowhead, much less Aspen. But for a quick route to the snow and a place that has retained its mountain charm for decades, it is a perfectly good destination if you aren’t looking for the luxe lodge life. With Snow Summit and Bear Mountain ski areas under the same ownership, one lift ticket is good at both and a free shuttle runs between them. Snow Summit is geared for traditional ski crowds and families. Bear Mountain — with more than 150 jumps, 80 jibs, a standard half-pipe and Southern California’s only superpipe — is positioned for the youth action scene. (Olympic snowboarder Shaun White spent many a childhood day there.)

Not up for the slopes? The area has plenty of affordable and even free opportunities for family fun in the snow. San Bernardino National Forest officials caution sledders to choose a safe spot away from traffic and free of obstructions such as rocks and trees. As always with Southern California skiing, check the snow report and road conditions before you go.

WHISTLER, B.C.

Distance from San Diego: 1,478 miles

Adult lift ticket: $91 Canadian (About $86 U.S.)

Lifts: Whistler Blackcomb 38

Runs: Whistler Blackcomb 200+

Vertical drop: Whistler Blackcomb 5,280 feet

Annual snowfall average: 402 inches

Lodging deal: To fill empty rooms before the Olympic crush, hotels are offering three nights of lodging with two-day lift tickets starting as low as $115 Canadian, or about $110 U.S., per person per night, based on double occupancy from Jan. 2 to Feb. 11. (888) 403-4727,
whistlerblackcomb.com/deals_packages/3night2day/index
.htm

The world will be watching the Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler this winter, and Whistler will be very crowded and very expensive. But before and after the Feb. 12-28 Games, Whistler — the stunning resort ranked No. 1 in North America by Skiing magazine and No. 2 by Ski magazine — will be on sale. That’s because of something called the “Olympic diversion effect.” “We knew to expect it and it’s come to fruition,” said Casey Vanden Heuvel, a spokesman for Tourism Whistler. What that means is people assume it’s already too late to go before the Olympics, and they imagine the two-week advertisement for Whistler’s beauty and vibrant village scene during the Games will make it too expensive and too crowded afterward. The opposite is true. The best seat for the Olympics is probably your sofa, but there are amazing deals in January and March, and the spring skiing season extends to almost summer.